WO2014083414A1

WO2014083414A1 - Apparatus to control a thermal conditioning plant

Info

Publication number: WO2014083414A1
Application number: PCT/IB2013/002670
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pier Luca MONTESSORO; Riccardo Bernardini; Daniele Casagrande; Mirko LOGHI
Original assignee: Universita' Degli Studi Di Udine
Priority date: 2012-11-29
Filing date: 2013-11-29
Publication date: 2014-06-05
Also published as: ITUD20120201A1

Abstract

An apparatus to control and regulate a thermal conditioning plant (12) of a building (11) provided with at least one main thermal unit (16) comprises at least one chronothermostat (13) and a programmable central control unit (15), outside and possibly distanced from said main thermal unit (16). The central control unit is connected, in an intermediate position, both to the chronothermostat (13), by means of an electric connection between a first power supply module (26) of the central control unit (15) and a second power supply module (27) of the chronothermostat (13), and also to the main thermal unit (16). The central control unit (15) and the chronothermostat (13) respectively comprise a first data communication interface (25a; 125a) and a second data communication interface (25b; 125b) connected with each other for the reciprocal exchange of data.

Description

W

1 -

"APPARATUS TO CONTROL A THERMAL CONDITIONING PLANT"

* *

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention concerns an apparatus for the control and optimized management of thermal conditioning plants.

In particular the present invention is usable in a domestic environment to control and manage both thermal conditioning plants defined by a single thermal zone to be thermally regulated, and also plants divided into a plurality of independent zones. The present invention is also usable in non-domestic environments, for example in an industrial or commercial building or in public buildings.

By the term thermal conditioning plants we mean both heating plants which use a heat generator and heating devices such as radiant plates, wall radiators, or fan coil units, or floor circuits, and also plants for cooling rooms, and also plants which carry out a combination of heating and cooling, namely a thermal conditioning of the room.

The present invention is applicable, in particular but not exclusively, to thermal conditioning plants for domestic environments, and is also applicable to non-domestic environments, such as buildings or industrial and commercial constructions, or public buildings.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is known that a generally widespread type of thermal conditioning plant for domestic use can comprise at least one main thermal unit, for example a heat generator such as a boiler, or an external unit of an air-conditioning plant. The main thermal unit is normally connected to a series of pipes to deliver and return a heat-carrying fluid, which convey the fluid toward a plurality of thermal conditioning devices positioned inside the dwelling.

In the case of a heating plant, the thermal conditioning devices can be, for example, radiators, radiant plates, integrated circuits in the floor, or other devices, generally positioned in each of the rooms of the dwelling to be heated.

In the case of a cooling plant, the thermal conditioning devices can be internal or "split" units, positioned in one or more zones of the dwelling to be cooled. Thennal conditioning plants are also known, divided into two or more independent sections, for example in order to determine different thermal conditions in the living zone of the dwelling with respect to the sleeping zone, or to obtain a diversified thermal regulation of the different floors in a building. Normally, known thermal conditioning plants are managed by one or more programmable chronothermostats connected to the main thermal unit cited above. In some thermal conditioning plants, the chronothermostats can be associated to devices that regulate and intercept the flow. The chronothermostats and the regulators/interceptors, together, define a control apparatus able to control and manage the thermal conditioning plant.

In particular, each chronothermostat allows the thermal-regulation of the zone of the dwelling which it serves, chronothermostats integrate a clock, a temperature sensor, a user interface and a programmable internal module connected electronically to the corresponding regulator/interceptor and to the main thermal unit in order to command the switching on and off of the latter, that is, in order to establish the instants of time in which the main thermal unit is switched on or off. The main thermal unit is commanded on the basis of the temperature detected by the above-mentioned sensor and on the basis of the programming data introduced by the user through the user interface. The programming data can concern, for example, the setting of the desired temperature, the times and the activation modes of the plant, the desired thermal cycles and the differential thresholds with respect to the temperature set.

Since each chronothermostat is independent from the others of the plant, the thermal conditioning plant is controlled and commanded, for each zone, by setting and programming the individual chronothermostat of said zone.

A possible disadvantage of known control apparatuses is that they are difficult to program, and require a long, and possibly repetitive, series of operations for programming each chronothermostat.

Another possible disadvantage of known apparatuses is that they can determine an inefficient management of the thermal conditioning plant, since normally they are conceived only to detect the temperature of the rooms and therefore are not able to control other thermodynamic parameters, so they can consequently generate a waste of energy.

A further disadvantage of known apparatuses could be that they use chronothermostats fed by accumulators, or batteries, which need to be periodically replaced, thus inconveniencing the user and determining, if they are flat, a lack of power to the chronothermostats.

Document US-A-5,348,078 describes a known system of heating and conditioning the air for a dwelling, provided with a heater and an air conditioner connected to individual zones of the building by means of a series of outlet pipes.

Document US-A-2009/0065595 describes a known system for cooling and heating in zones.

One purpose of the present invention is to produce an apparatus for controlling a thermal conditioning plant which is easy to regulate and program, even in the case of a plant divided into several sections or zones.

Another purpose of the present invention is to perfect a method to control a thermal conditioning plant which is able to optimize energy consumption and obtain an optimal thermal comfort without wasting energy.

Another purpose of the present invention is to produce an apparatus which is easily associable to pre-existing thermal conditioning plants, replacing an apparatus of the known type.

Another purpose is to obtain a system which is predictive, on the basis of the thermodynamic behavior of the building, and which will perform as a consequence thereof.

In particular, one purpose is to obtain a system which is able to identify the thermodynamic model of the building in which it is installed, so as to predict the optimum instances for switching the plant on and off.

The Applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is set forth and characterized in the independent claims, while the dependent claims describe other characteristics of the invention or variants to the main inventive idea.

In accordance with the above purposes, an apparatus according to the present invention is usable to control and regulate a thermal conditioning plant of a building, for example a dwelling or an industrial or commercial building, or public buildings, provided with at least a main themial unit. The apparatus comprises at least one chronothermostat and, according to one feature of the present invention, also a programmable central control unit, outside and possibly distanced from the main thermal unit, and connected, in an intermediate position, both to the chronothermostat and to the main thermal unit.

The connection between the central control unit and the chronothermostat can be the electric type, and in this case occurs between a first power supply module of the central control unit and a second power supply module, present in the chronothermostat; the connection can also be the electronic type, and in this case allows the reciprocal exchange of data between a first data communication interface of the chronothermostat and a second data communication interface of the central control unit.

The connection can combine both types: in this way, advantageously, the central control unit can both electrically feed the chronothermostat or the chronothermostats connected to it, and also receive from them the temperature data measured in their own installation zone. Giving power supply of the chronothermostats to the central control unit obtains the advantage of avoiding the use of accumulators or batteries, with the consequent saving both in terms of management costs of the plant and in terms of time, since the periodic replacement of the accumulators is avoided, and in terms of generating special waste, like the accumulators, precisely.

Moreover, since the central control unit is a physical entity outside the main thermal unit, it can advantageously be positioned at any point of the building whatsoever, according to specific needs. For example, it can be positioned in the same room as the main thermal unit, or it can be positioned in any space or area in the building, such as a room in the building, if the main thermal unit is installed outside the building. This has the advantage for the user that he can program the central control unit even in bad weather conditions.

In some forms of embodiment, the central control unit also comprises an electronic control unit configured to communicate in reading and writing with a memorization unit in which thermodynamic data of the plant, energy data of the building, thermodynamic algorithms and programming data for the thermal regulation of the building are memorized. Both the thermodynamic data of the plant and the energy data of the building can be self-learnt, for example, or memorized in advance.

In some forms of embodiment, both the electric connection between the chronothermostat, or chronothermostats, and the central control unit, and the electronic connection mentioned above, are achieved using a single connection cable configured to support both power supply and also data transmission, having, for example, at least a first electric conductor wire that connects electrically said first and second power supply modules to each other, and at least a second electric conductor wire that connects said first and second data communication interface to each other.

Other forms of embodiment of the invention provide that the connection between the first and the second power supply module occurs by means of said connection cable, and that the connection between the first and second data communication interface occurs by means of a wireless connection.

It is therefore possible to install the apparatus in question, which carries out the remote-control feed of the chronothermostats, even in a pre-existing plant, using the connection cables already present in the plant and providing to install only the central control unit and to replace the pre-existing thermostats.

The interventions on the pre-existing plant and building are therefore advantageously minimal and non-invasive.

According to another feature of the present invention, the central control unit comprises an electronic control unit and a memorization unit, wherein the electronic control unit is configured to communicate in reading and writing with the memorization unit.

It is also a feature of the invention to provide that the central control unit, in some forms of embodiment, comprises a sensor interface connected electronically to one or more temperature sensors associated with the building or with parts of the thermal conditioning plant and configured to detect the temperature of the respective installation points and to send to the sensor interface digital signals corresponding to the temperatures detected. Moreover, the memorization unit is connected to the sensor interface and is configured to memorize the digital signals.

In some forms of embodiment the connection between the temperature sensors and the sensor interface of the central control unit is wired.

Other forms of embodiment provide that the connection between the temperature sensors and the sensor interface of the central control unit is the wireless type.

The apparatus according to the present invention can also serve a thermal conditioning plant divided into a plurality of thermally independent zones and comprising a number of chronothermostats at least equal in number to the thermally independent zones. All the chronothermostats are connected to the central control unit and are distributed in the thermally independent zones. Since each of the chronothermostats comprises at least one temperature gauge configured to measure the room temperature of the corresponding thermally independent zone and a micro-controller connected to the temperature gauge, to convert the thermal measurement of the latter into a digital signal, all the chronothermostats are therefore also able to send the digital signal to the central control unit.

The present invention also concerns a method to control and manage a thermal conditioning plant of a building, where the thermal conditioning plant comprises at least one main thermal unit and a chronothermostat, which provides to connect, in an intermediate position, a programmable central control unit both to the main thermal unit and also to the chronothermostat, in order to carry out the selective activation or deactivation of the main thermal unit and to provide power supply to the chronothermostat, that is, feed it electrically, and the reciprocal exchange of temperature data between chronothermostat and central control unit. In some fom s of embodiment of the invention, the method comprises:

- memorization in a memorization unit of the central control unit at least of thermodynamic algorithms and of programming data for the thermal regulation;

- transmission of temperature data from the chronothermostat to the central control unit;

- processing by the control unit of the central control unit of the temperature data, based on the thermodynamic algorithms and the programming data previously memorized;

- implementation of a map, intended as a determination of a sequence of instants of switching on and off, for switching on the main thermal unit to selectively command it to be activated or deactivated and to determine or obtain the desired thermal regulation of the building.

According to another feature of the control and regulation method according to the present invention, if the thermal conditioning plant is divided into a plurality of thermally independent zones, the programming data of each of the thermally independent zones are memorized in the single central control unit during the memorization. Moreover, the central control unit processes the temperature data coming from the chronothermostats of the thermally independent zones on the basis of the programming data and the thermodynamic algorithms.

In this way, there is the advantage that both the programming and the management of the whole plant, even if complex and divided into thermally independent zones each with its own needs, is carried out using a single central control unit. This allows to simplify and considerably speed up the preliminary setting operations, since they are carried out only once, and in a single position, for the whole plant and not, as happens in the state of the art, a number of times equal to the number of chronothermostats which the plant is provided with.

Moreover, the use of a single programmable component with the capacity to process the plant data allows to carry out a more efficient and faster global control and an overall management of the plant.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of some forms of embodiment, given as a non- restrictive example with reference to the attached drawings wherein:

- fig. 1 is a plan view which schematically shows the section of a building in which an apparatus according to the present invention is installed;

- fig. 2 is a functional block diagram of the apparatus in fig 1 ;

- fig. 3 is a variant of fig. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME FORMS OF EMBODIMENT

With reference to fig. 1, an apparatus 10 according to the present invention is associated to a thermal conditioning plant, in this case a heating plant 12 for heating a building 1 1 , such as for example a dwelling, or an industrial or commercial building, or public buildings, in order to control it and manage its thermal regulation. Hereafter in the description, reference will be made, merely by way of example, to the heating plant 12, even if the present invention can be applied to any other type of thermal conditioning plant, for example cooling plants or combined heating and cooling plants.

The heating plant 12 can be divided, or mapped, into a plurality of thermally independent zones 14, for example four as shown in fig. 1, but one, two, three, five or more than five are also possible, according to requirements.

The apparatus 10 comprises one or more chronothermostats 13, for example, one, two, three, four, five or even more than five, each positioned in one of the thermally independent zones 14 into which the heating plant 12 is divided. In the example in fig. 1, four chronothermostats 13 are provided. Typically, the number of chronothermostats 13 can be equal to the number of the thermally independent zones 14.

The thermally independent zones 14 can be defined by single rooms, or groups of rooms, of the building 1 1, as occurs for example in the typical case of separate thermal management of the living zone and the sleeping zone of a dwelling, or can be defined by different floors of the building 1 1 , or also by different dwellings or living units which are all dependent on the same heating plant 12.

The chronothermostats 13 are electronically connected to a central control unit 15, to which they send the data concerning the temperature of the respective thermally independent zone 14 to which they are associated. In some forms of embodiment, there may be a single central control unit 15, for example.

It can be provided that each chronothermostat 13 comprises a clock integrated inside it. It can also be provided that only the central control unit 15 is provided with a clock, in order to temporally control the chronothermostats 13.

In particular, the connection of each chronothermostat 13 to the central control unit 15 is carried out by means of a single connection cable 22 which receives at inlet from the central control unit 15 both data and power supply, so that both the data transmission and the power supply of the chronothermostats 13 are performed through the single connection cable 22.

In this way the remote-control power supply of the chronothermostats 13 is obtained, which, unlike the chronothermostats normally used in known thermal conditioning plants, do not therefore need energy accumulators to feed them. Consequently, almost all the attention and maintenance required by the user are practically eliminated.

The central control unit 15 is connected to both the chronothermostats 13 and also to a main thermal unit, in this case a boiler, or main thermal unit 16 of the apparatus 10, or other heat generator usable for the heating plant 12. In particular the central control unit 15 can be disposed in an intermediate position between the chronothermostats 13 and the boiler 16.

The central control unit 15 is advantageously outside and possibly distanced from the boiler 16, that is, it is a physically separate and autonomous entity with respect to the latter. The central control unit 15, to which all the chronothermostats 13 are connected, can be positioned in the same room in which the boiler 16 is, for example a boiler room (fig. 1), or it can be positioned in a different room from the boiler 16, for example any room whatsoever in the building 1 1. The latter case is particularly indicated for thermal conditioning plants 12 in which the boiler 16 is installed outside the building 1 1. The fact that the central control unit 15 is inside allows the user to be able to control, manage and program the central control unit 15 from inside, which can be particularly important in bad weather conditions.

The central control unit 15 is programmable and has the function of processing, on the basis of such programming and using algorithms pre- memorized inside it, the data received from the chronothermostats 13, in order to selectively command the boiler 16 to switch on and off. In this way, the central control unit 15 allows to regulate the delivery of heat to each thermally independent zone 14 in order to obtain the thermal regulation desired by the user and set by him/her using the programming.

The heat is delivered to the thermally independent zones 14 by means of heating devices 17, which act as thermal conditioning devices and are present in each thermally independent zone 14. The heating devices 17 can each be connected to the boiler 16 by a delivery pipe 18 and a return pipe 19.

In the case shown by way of example in fig. 1, the connection between the heating devices 17 and the boiler 16 is indirect and occurs by means of a distributor comprising a collector 20 and, for each heating device 17, for example a regulation valve 21, or other similar device, which acts as a regulator-inteceptor of the flow rate.

The collector 20 is configured to distribute the heat-carrying fluid from the boiler 16 to the heating devices 17, and vice versa.

Each regulation valve 21 can act as a flow regulator for each pair of delivery 18 and return 19 pipes.

The regulation valves 21 can advantageously be of the electrically driven type. Moreover, the regulation valves 21 can be connected to the central control unit 15, which is able to selectively command them to open, close or adjust, on the basis of the specific needs of the thermally independent zone 14 to which they refer. For example, it may be provided that the regulation valve 21 has only two states (open/closed), and also that it is possible to continuously vary the degree of opening/closing thereof.

For each thermally independent zone 14, the chronothermostat 13 detects, by means of its own integrated temperature gauge 23 (fig. 2), the ambient temperature of the corresponding thermally independent zone 14.

Moreover, the chronothermostat 13 processes the thermal measurement indicated above through an integrated micro-controller 24, that can be connected for example to the temperature gauge 23, in order to convert it into a digital signal. One or more first data communication interfaces 25a can be integrated into the central control unit 15. Similarly, each chronothermostat 13 can have, integrated, a second data communication interface 25b. The latter can receive the digital signal from the micro-controller 24 and send it, through the connection cable 22. to the corresponding first data communication interface 25a of the central control unit 15.

For example, as many first data communication interfaces 25a may be provided as there are chronothermostats 13.

In the case described here by way of example, the central control unit 15 can comprise four first data communication interfaces 25a, that is, one for each of the four chronothermostats 13.

In the case of one, two, three, five or more chronothermostats 13, one, two, three, five or more corresponding first data communication interfaces 25a are respectively provided.

As shown in fig. 2, in addition to the first data communication interface 25a and the second data communication interface 25b, a first power supply module 26 integrated into the central control unit 15 is also connected to each connection cable 22. The first power supply module 26 is configured to send electric impulses to electrically feed the chronothermostat 13. A second power supply module 27, integrated into the chronothermostat 13, can also be connected to each connection cable 22. The second power supply module 27 can be configured to receive the electric impulses and supply the electric feed current to the chronothermostat 13. By means of the first data communication interface 25a and the first feed module 26, the central control unit 15 can therefore operate a differentiation of the impulses passing through the connection cable 22.

In this way, thanks to the differentiation of the impulses passing through it, each connection cable 22 conveys the data coming from the chronothermostats 13 toward the central control unit 15 and at the same time allows the electric feed of the latter.

It is therefore possible to use the apparatus 10 also in pre-existing thermal conditioning plants, modifying them to introduce the central control unit 15 and to replace the thermostats already present with the chronothermostats 13, but without intervening on the cables already present, which can be reused.

In a variant solution of the present invention, shown in fig. 3, and which can be combined with other forms of embodiment described here, the connection cable 22 can act only as an power supply cable, while the data exchange can be entrusted to first 125a and second 125b data communication interfaces, of the wireless type. In this variant solution, the first 125a and the second 125b data communication interfaces replace, respectively in the central control unit 15 and in each chronothermostat 13, the first 25a and the second 25b data communication interfaces described above and functioning through the connection cable 22.

Each chronothermostat 13, moreover, can integrate a chronothermostat interface 28, which can have only the function of displaying the time and room temperature, such as for example a screen or display, or can allow, besides the display, also the insertion of some data, for setting, for example, the current date and time, by a user or operator, installer or programmer. The chronothermostat interface 28 can therefore have both a display screen and a data insertion device. such as a keyboard, or a touch-screen, not shown in the attached drawings.

The data that the central control unit 15 receives from the chronothermostats 13 can be processed by an electronic control unit 29, such as for example a microprocessor, using thermodynamic algorithms pre-memorized for example in a memorization unit 30 of the central control unit 15, insertable and memorizable for example in the programming or production steps.

Moreover, energy data relating to the building 1 1 can be memorized in the memorization unit 30, such as for example the thermal exchange coefficients of the walls, and/or of possible doors and windows, to calculate the transmittance of each of the thermally independent zones 14. The data relating to the dispersions of the heating plant 12 and the heat exchange coefficients of the heating devices 17 can also be memorized, as energy data.

The energy data can be inserted in the memorization unit 30 by the user or by the installer, or even by an operator in the programming or production steps, using a central control unit interface 31 , which can advantageously be integrated in the central control unit 15.

The central control unit interface 31 can be configured to allow both to display the functioning data in real time, to display the process data, to insert, consult and modify the energy data, by a user for example (user interface) and/or by an operator during the production and programming steps.

It is also possible, through the central control unit interface 31 , for example for the user or for an operator, to program the thermal regulation of the thermally independent zones 14. This programming provides that the user memorizes in the central control unit 15 the desired temperature for each thermally independent zone 14, as well as the actual times in which there must be that temperature in the corresponding thermally independent zone 14.

The programming can be carried out on the basis of the following programming criteria: intended use of the thermally independent zones 14, possible planned presence or absence of people inside the building 1 1 , other subjective criteria at the user's discretion.

Other programming criteria of the central control unit 15 can be, for example, the differential thresholds, maximum and minimum, with respect to the temperature desired. After said programming, the central control unit 15 provides autonomously to manage the boiler 16, on the basis of said thermodynamic algorithms, calculating the optimal instants for switching the plant on and off, in order to obtain the desired temperature in the thermally independent zones 14, at the times desired by the client, minimizing the costs.

In particular, the central control unit 15 is able to calculate the possible thermal transitories, for example on the basis of the thermal inertia of the rooms in the thermally independent zones 14 and their initial temperatures of a thermal conditioning cycle, and to regulate the on and off mode of the boiler 16 on this basis, so as to obtain what the user has set. In this way, unlike what is possible in known thermal conditioning plants, the temperature of each thermally independent zone 14 is taken to normal working conditions when so desired by the user, not after or before what he/she has set.

In some forms of embodiment of the present invention, the central control unit 15 is configured to detect, autonomously and without programming by the user or the installer, the parameters of the thermodynamic algorithms.

Indeed, in these forms of embodiment, the central control unit 15 can be configured to self-learn, using analysis of a succession of thermal cycles, the thermodynamic behavior of the rooms in the building 1 1. The central control unit 15 can be able to extrapolate and memorize, through said analysis of successive thermal cycles, at least thermodynamic data of the heating plant 12 and energy data of the building 1 1. Moreover, by means of said extrapolation, the central control unit is able to calibrate the thermodynamic algorithms.

It is therefore clear that it is sufficient to program the central control unit 15 alone, in order to obtain the control and management of the whole heating plant 12. It is not necessary to set the chronothermostats 13 one by one, as normally happens in known conditioning plants, but all the thermally independent zones 14 are controlled by the single central control unit 15.

The method to control and manage the heating plant 12 provides that, as the central control unit 15 progressively receives the temperature data from the chronothermostats 13, said data are memorized in the memorization unit 30.

Moreover, it is provided that the electronic control unit 29 interrogates the memorization unit 30 in order to acquire from the latter both said temperature data and also the programming settings memorized therein by the user.

Depending on the settings memorized, the electronic control unit 29 processes the data on the basis of said thermodynamic algorithms present in the memorization unit 30, in order to guarantee the comfort and the thermal regulation that the user wishes to obtain.

In some forms of embodiment, to perform its function of controlling and regulating the heating plant 12, the central control unit 15 can also be electronically connected to a first temperature sensor 32, positioned outside the building 1 1 and with the function of measuring the temperature of the external environment, continuously or at pre-established intervals, and of sending the data to the central control unit 15. The electronic control unit 29 provides to memorize the external temperature datum in the memorization unit 30, for a subsequent use as input for said thermodynamic algorithms.

Further input data can be the temperatures of the heat-carrying fluid in the delivery pipe 18 and/or return pipe 19 of the boiler 16, which are transmitted to the central control unit 15 by respective second 33 and/or third 34 temperature sensors.

The input data cited above are received by the central control unit 15 through a sensor interface 35, to which one or more temperature sensors 32, 33, 34 can be connected at input.

The sensor interface 35 is configured to communicate at exit with the electronic control unit 29, which memorizes the input data in the memorization unit 30.

In the form of embodiment described using figs. 1 and 2, the sensor interface 35 can be the cabled type, while in the variant shown in fig. 3 the sensor interface 35 can be replaced by a sensor interface 135 of the wireless type.

In the same way, temperature sensors 132, 133, 134 with wireless transmission and reception can replace the temperature sensors 32, 33, 34 and communicate with the sensor interface 135 cited above.

Following the memorization of the input data, the control method in question provides that they are processed by the electronic control unit 29 together with the data coming from the chronothermostats 13.

Consequently, once the processing of the input data has been earned out, the central control unit 15 is configured to determine both a svvitching-on map, intended as a determinate sequence of switching on and switching off instants of the boiler 16, to which it is connected by means of an actuator 36, and also a map of the activations/deactivations or regulations of the regulation valves 21, to which it is connected by means of a regulation module 37.

In this way, a desired quantity of hot heat-carrying fluid is conveyed to each heating device 17 in order to guarantee that the desired temperatures for each thermally independent zone 14 are reached and maintained. Moreover, a complex regulation can also be carried out, using as feedback data the temperatures measured by the temperature gauges 23, which allows to optimize the delivery of heating energy to the heat-carrying fluid and the energy exchanged by it with the heating devices 17, in order to prevent waste of energy due to excessive heating or excessive cooling of the thermally independent zones 14.

In the variant shown in fig. 3, in substitution of the regulation module 37, in which the connections between the regulation valves 21 and the central control unit 15 are made using electric cables, a regulation module 137, with wireless communication, allows the wireless management of the regulation valves 21.

It is clear that modifications and/or additions of parts may be made to the apparatus 10 to control and regulate a heating plant 12 as described heretofore, without departing from the field and scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. Apparatus to control and regulate a thermal conditioning plant ( 12) of a building ( 1 1), said apparatus comprising at least one main thermal unit ( 16) of said thermal conditioning plant ( 12), said apparatus also comprising at least a chronothennostat ( 13) and being characterized in that it also comprises a single central control unit (15), programmable to selectively command the switching on and off of said main thermal unit ( 16), said central control unit ( 15) being outside and possibly distanced from said main thermal unit (16), and connected both to said chronothermostat (13), by means of an electric connection between a first power supply module (26) of said central control unit (15) and a second power supply module (27) of said chronothermostat ( 13), and also to said main thermal unit ( 16), wherein said central control unit ( 15) and said chronothermostat ( 13) respectively comprise a first data communication interface (25a; 125a) and a second data communication interface (25b; 125b) connected with each other for the reciprocal exchange of data, said central control unit ( 15) also comprising an electronic control unit (29) configured to communicate in reading and writing with a memorization unit (30) in which thermodynamic data of said plant ( 12), energy data of said building ( 1 1 ), thermodynamic algorithms and programming data for the thermal regulation of said building ( 1 1) are memorized.

2. Apparatus as in claim 1, characterized in that it comprises, for each chronothennostat ( 13), a connection cable (22) having at least a first electric conductor wire which electrically connects said first power supply module (26) to said second power supply module (27) and at least a second electric conductor wire which connects said first data communication interface (25a) to said second data communication interface (25b).

3. Apparatus as in claim 1 , characterized in that, for each chronothermostat ( 13), it comprises a connection cable (22) having at least an electric conductor wire which electrically connects said first power supply module (26) to said second power supply module (27), and in that said first data communication interface (125a) and said second data communication interface ( 125b) are connected to each other by means of a wireless data connection.

4. Apparatus as in any claim from 1 to 3, characterized in that said central control unit ( 15) comprises an actuator (36) for the selective activation of the main thermal unit (16), said actuator (36) being controlled by said central control unit (15).

5. Apparatus as in any of the claims from 1 to 4, wherein said thermal conditioning plant (12) is divided into a plurality of thermally independent zones (14), characterized in that it comprises a number of chronothermostats (13) at least equal to the number of thermally independent zones (14), all connected to said central control unit (15) and distributed in said thermally independent zones (14), and in that each of said chronothermostats (13) comprises at least one temperature measurer (23) configured to measure the room temperature of the corresponding thermally independent zone ( 14), and a micro-controller (24) connected to said temperature measurer (23) to convert the thermal measurement of the latter into a digital signal.

6. Apparatus as in claim 5, characterized in that said micro-controller (24) is connected to said first data communication interface (25a; 125a) to transmit to the latter said digital signal.

7. Apparatus as in any claim from 1 to 6, characterized in that said central control unit (15) comprises a sensor interface (35, 135) electronically connected to one or more temperature sensors (32, 33, 34; 132, 133, 134) associated to said building (1 1) or to parts of said thermal conditioning plant ( 12) and configured to detect the temperature of the respective installation points and to send to said sensor interface (35, 135) digital signals corresponding to the temperatures detected, and in that said memorization unit (30) is connected to said sensor interface (35, 135) and configured to memorize said digital signals.

8. Apparatus as in claim 7, wherein said main thermal unit (16) is provided with at least a delivery pipe (18) and/or a return pipe (19) for heat-carrying fluid, characterized in that said one or more temperature sensors are chosen from a group comprising:

- at least a first temperature sensor (32, 132), positioned outside said building (1 1 ), and configured to measure the temperature of the environment outside the building (1 1 ),

- at least a second temperature sensor (33, 133). associated to said delivery pipe (18) of said main thermal unit (16) and configured to measure the temperature of said heat-carrying fluid exiting from the main thermal unit ( 16), - at least a third temperature sensor (34, 134), associated to said return pipe (19) of said main thermal unit (16) and configured to measure the temperature of said heat-carrying fluid entering the main thermal unit (16).

9. Apparatus as in claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the connection between said temperature sensors (32, 33, 34) and said sensor interface (35) is wired.

10. Apparatus as in claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the connection between said temperature sensors ( 132, 133, 134) and said sensor interface (135) is the wireless type.

1 1. Apparatus as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that said central control unit (15) comprises a central control interface (31), configured to allow the introduction of at least said programming data for the heat regulation of each of said thermally independent zones ( 14) and in that said central control interface (31) is connected to said memorization unit (30) in order to transfer and memorize said data and said algorithms.

12. Method to control and manage a thermal conditioning plant (12) of a building (1 1), wherein said thermal conditioning plant (12) comprises at least one main thermal unit (16) and a chronothermostat ( 13), characterized in that it provides to connect, a programmable central control unit (15) both to said main thermal unit (16), and also to said chronothermostat (13), in order to carry out the selective activation or deactivation of said main thermal unit (16) and to provide the electrical feeding of the chronothermostat ( 13) and the reciprocal exchange of temperature data between said chronothermostat ( 13) and said central control unit (15), said method also comprising:

- memorization in a memorization unit (30) of said central control unit (15) at least of thermodynamic algorithms and of programming data for the thermal regulation;

- transmission of temperature data from said chronothermostat (13) to said central control unit (15);

- processing by the control unit (29) of said central control unit (15) of said temperature data, based on said thermodynamic algorithms and said programming data;

- implementation of a map for switching on said main thermal unit (16) to selectively command it to be activated or deactivated and to determine the desired thermal regulation of said building (1 1).

13. Method as in claim 12, characterized in that, before the processing, said central control unit ( 15) receives, as input data to be processed, also the temperature data coming from at least a temperature sensor chosen from a group comprising at least a first temperature sensor (32, 132), positioned outside said building (1 1) and configured to measure the temperature of the environment outside the building (1 1), a second temperature sensor (33, 133), configured to measure the temperature of the heat-carrying fluid exiting from the main thermal unit (16), a third temperature sensor (34, 134), configured to measure the temperature of said heat-carrying fluid entering the main thermal unit ( 16).

14. Method as in claim 12 or 13, wherein said thermal conditioning plant ( 12) is divided into a plurality of thermally independent zones (14) and comprises a number of chronothermostats (13) at least equal to the number of said thermally independent zones ( 14), characterized in that the memorization provides that the programming data of the thermal regulation of each of said thermally independent zones (14) are memorized in the sole central control unit ( 15), and in that the latter carries out the processing of the temperature data arriving from said chronothermostats (13) based on said programming data and said thermodynamic algorithms.

15. Method as in claim 12, 13 or 14, characterized in that it comprises the memorization in the memorization unit (30) of said central control unit (15) of thermodynamic algorithms of said thermal conditioning plant ( 12) and of energy data of said building (1 1).

16. Method as in claim 12, 13 or 14, characterized in that it comprises:

- self-learning by means of extrapolation by said central control unit (15) at least of thermodynamic data of said thermal conditioning plant (12) and of energy data of said building (1 1) based on the analysis of successive thermal cycles;

- calibration of said thermodynamic algorithms, by means of said thermodynamic data and said energy data.